From today, a new loyalty scheme, called ‘Nectar Prices’ will see the price of more than 300 items reduced, the superstore has confirmed.

In a move similar to one by rival Tesco, which reduces prices on some items for Clubcard holders, Sainsbury’s has introduced the reductions for its 18 million Nectar customers.

Initially around 300 items have been included in the scheme across several areas including household products, pet food, and confectionery.

It is available in all Sainsbury’s supermarkets, and for online shopping, but not in convenience stores.

To access the cheaper prices, shoppers must have a Nectar card and scan it at the checkout. If they are shopping online or through the shop’s app, the reduced prices will be applied automatically if they have added their Nectar card to their account.

Some examples of savings cited by Sainsbury’s include:

• Heinz baked beans 415g, 95p (normally £1.40)
• Ariel all-in-1 pods washing liquid capsules original (39 washes), £5 (normally £10.50)
• 24 x 330ml Coke Zero, £5 (normally £10)
• 200g Nescafé Gold Blend coffee £4 (normally £8.10)
• Oral-B Pro 3 3500 cross action, black & travel case, £45 (normally £100)
• 720g Kellogg’s Crunchy Nut £3.75 (normally £4.80)

The supermarket said the lower Nectar prices will be expanded into more categories throughout the year.

It also said it was offering personalised discounts via its Your Nectar Prices scheme, which gives customers lower prices on products they regularly buy when they use a Smart Shop app or scanner.

Customers who use a Nectar card earn at least one point per £1 spent at Sainsbury’s. They can also earn points at a range of other retailers under the Nectar scheme umbrella.

The new Sainsbury’s plan comes as food prices have soared in the last year and shoppers look for ways to save money. Prices have risen by £840, according to Kantar, and competition to attract and retain new customers is rife among the big supermarkets.

In February, Sainsbury’s introduced £2 fruit and vegetable boxes while Aldi partnered with the app Too Good To Go to offer £3.50 ‘magic’ food bags. Ocado also recently began a Tesco price match on around 1,000 items. Yet Aldi was the cheapest supermarket in March, according to Which?.

‘It gets better’

Simon Roberts, chief executive officer at Sainsbury’s, said: “We are delighted to launch Nectar Prices, which will help millions of our customers save more on every trip to Sainsbury’s. There is much more to look forward to, we will keep refreshing Nectar Prices and increasing the variety of products on offer.

“It gets better, Nectar customers who shop in store with SmartShop will receive extra personalised value with Your Nectar Prices, bringing them the best prices on their favourite products. Our customers really are at the heart of every decision we make and we hope they find that Nectar Prices is an exciting way to bring them consistently great value all year round.”